Category: Hot Wheels

A thread came up on an online forum regarding perspective and photography of diecast cars.

It’s an interesting thing to think about, right? Why do so many people take ugly shots of their cars – just all scattered on a carpet, or in a dark room with grainy light, or on a creepy looking shelf in a basement?

Okay, I’ll stop being mean. A lot of people want to take a quick snapshot to catalogue their collection. But not me – I love my little cars and want to bring them to life in their own little scaled down world. Here’s a few shots from the last year that highlight my style of things.

Mr and Mrs, visiting the keys!Godzilla, with some other monsters lurking nearby…Getting the perspective right gives this little Ferrari a big dose of attitude!A brick wall can be a great place to host a gathering of old friends!And to make some new discoveries…A low level shot can give this tiny camping scene a lot of character.Placing objects closer together can make the image a lot larger.A small stream can become a mighty river…And a small lake within a park can become a mighty sea!Playing with light to capture the perfect curves.

Hope you enjoyed! And sorry to any of my IG followers who have not had an original photos in this post. Sadly life gets in the way sometimes.

This has been a long time coming. If you are in the UK, you have already probably been and gotten this set by now. If you are in the US, I would be surprised if you haven’t found it either, but there’s a chance for you to trade since it’s been here for some time now!

It has been a while since my last post but that is what happens when you are bogged down with other projects (especially when those other projects are what make you money, rather than a hobby blog!) and since I have been inundated with fantastic items recently, including Matchbox old and new, I have found it difficult to keep up with cataloguing everything. But worry not, there is a lot to come. I have also come up with some storage solutions and my Matchbox dealer has just gotten me into Matchbox Majors.

I was in TRU recently not expecting to find anything interesting (they have reduced their Majorette stock rather drastically, so now it takes around twenty seconds to check out the pegs)

However I did discover to my surprise a box in the aisle labelled “HW Lamborghini”. Naturally my curiosity was piqued so I took a look… and wow! What a fantastic find! A box just full of Lambos. It was an 8-car series, but I only picked up four, since £20 seemed a bit steep to grab all of them at once. Oh, and I haven’t been collecting Hot Wheels of late. I’ve just gone off them for some reason.

The series includes:

Lamborghini Countach (Red)

Lamborghini Murcielago (Yellow)

Lamborghini Estoque (White)

Lamborghini Reventón (White)

Lamborghini Reventón Roadster (Silver)

Lamborghini Urus (Dark red)

Lamborghini Sesto Elemento (Black)

Lamborghini Aventador (Black)

These vanished off the pegs almost instantly, so I was lucky to grab the four I did when I had the opportunity. Anyway, enjoy these photos of the ones I bought, and a brief review of each model.

I did not pick up the Urus because I hate it as a car; it’s ugly and a bandwagon mobile. I didn’t get the Reventón because the Roadster looks cooler; the Sesto Elemento was too black, and I already have a more attractive colour, and I don’t care enough about the Aventador to buy another one.

Lamborghini Countach LP500

I can’t think of a more legendary shape for a car. Certainly the Countach is well known amongst petrol heads for being the pioneer of the wedge shaped era. The Countach has been covered by most diecast brands; however, for such a legendary car, it’s hard to find one which captures the looks of the Countach right – the lowness and the unnatural angles have to be spot-on, and the wheels can make or break the looks. This latest Hot Wheels Countach isn’t perfect, but it’s one of the best I’ve seen.

I don’t think Hot Wheels quite managed to capture the lowness of the Countach (there are some really big gaps in the wheel arches – I think having the “Hot Wheels treatment” on the wheels here doesn’t work as well as a set of matching wheels would have done. The headlight tampos work really nicely and, as a pleasant surprise, are nice and accurate. The indicator light is also a nice touch on the front fenders, and the black stripe is retro cool.

This Countach is the LP500 model, easily distinguished from the earlier models by the aggressive air scoops and wheel arches that look a bit like afterthoughts on Gandini’s original design.

The spoiler adds to the aggressive styling, and distracts from the fact the back end of the car sits way too high thanks to those oversized wheels; the lack of tail lights is a bit frustrating with the thick paints, but one can’t be too critical; after all, this is a Hot Wheel. Oh, and did I mention it has a metal base? This is one heavy model. It’s awesome to pick up a full metal casting these days.

Would you argue this is still one of the best looking Lambos in small scale? I certainly would. I hope Hot Wheels make extra use of this casting in the near future; I’d love to see white, gold, and black for this car.

Lamborghini Murciélago

I am not a massive fan of modern Lamborghinis, but the Murciélago is about as Lamborghini as a modern Lamborghini can get, with its angular styling, scissor doors, and cliché naming conventions.

I only picked up four Hot Wheels Lamborghini models, and it was actually a tough decision, since it was such a desirable series; the Murciélago was one which had to hop in my basket, since the design and colour was so attractive. This model is a great example of why Hot Wheels don’t need big, silly wheels at the back and tiny ones at the front; it looks super by just sitting nice and flat against the ground. This is especially true for Lamborghinis and the Murciélago, since it has such a low-slung look and dramatic styling.

Another reason this one popped out was the attractive and wonderfully accurate tampo arrangement. Hot Wheels are approaching premium prices with this line here in the UK and it’s good to see they’re making the effort to have nice looking designs on their cars. Yellow paint is sometimes an issue for coverage and comes out quite thick; this one has not been the victim of hidden body lines, and the smooth shape comes out nicely.

It was also clever of them to integrate the plastic base plate into the rear light/vent cluster arrangement, even if it does look to be a bit all over the place. I love the rear light cluster. This is the earlier design from around 2002, later models had much cleaner styling.

The front tampo design is also very pretty, though I think it could have done without the stripes and instead had some black-out on the lower intake (strange that they didn’t use the base plate there, as they did on the back!) I also think some door mirror would have been nice, but perhaps it was thought they’d distract from the slippery profile.

Lamborghini Reventón Roadster

Even if you are unfamiliar with or even dislike Lamborghinis, there are some names you will recognise, simply because you get them repeated all the time on car shows and celebrities love them. Others cause a stir because only a small number are made. Murciélago is one, as is, I would say, Aventador, and to a lesser extent, Reventón.

It strikes me that the Reventón had cult status destined for itself simply for its low production numbers and out-of-this-world price tag. It was Lamborghini’s most expensive model before the arrival of the Sesto Elemento (you can get the HW version of that one too – I’ve got the blue one) and it sold out in a snap. As far as I can tell, the Roadster is yet a concept. If anyone has any news on the Reventón Roadster I will gladly receive it.

Hot Wheels sure did a number on this car. It’s low, the wheels are mean, and the details are intense. I love the metalflake silver and the headlight tampos. Once again, it’s a shame the lower intakes aren’t blacked out. The model looks surprisingly true to the original concept, however they’ve stuck a rather unnecessary black stripe on the bonnet. The real thing is totally dramatic with that low profile and scissor doors, and Hot Wheels were the right ones to capture it.

Once can’t expect Hot Wheels to capture the wheel design and paint scheme perfectly, but I think these ten-spokes look just as good on the model as a more true-to-the-original design would have done. The body of the car is fantastically low, very impressive.

Things look even more dramatic at the rear. There’s plenty of detail on the rear deck, a nice black Lamborghini logo, and those big moody tail lights and vents work super well as part of the base plate.

The interior is pretty well detailed too; you can make out details on the seats and dash, and the steering wheel isn’t a mere blob, which makes you appreciate it more, even if it’s all black and hard to make out. I love the Reventón Roadster, and so it had to come with me!

Lamborghini Estoque

From one concept to another, the Estoque is a bit of a departure from what we might expect from Lamborghini. Here is a concept for a four door sedan that only the 1% can afford. With no current plans to produce it, the Hot Wheels looks like it might be the one to develop this car fame.

It is an interesting model, and I picked it up for curiosity’s sake, since I had never heard of the Estoque. It is not an ugly car but neither is it beautiful, and Hot Wheels have opted for a minimalist approach on its design – white, with headlight tampos and nothing at the rear give it a half-finished look. The grey pinstripes end in a Hot Wheels logo on the boot lid, and the wheels are incredibly bling.

For a Lamborghini, the design might be considered somewhat underwhelming – a four door sedan? “Estoque” refers to the sword that kills the bull in Spain’s iconic heritage – let’s hope that’s not a gloomy omen for this company.

This car reminds me a little of the Lamborghini Marzal, the true four-seater that gained more fame as a scale model than as a real car. I wonder if this might be true of the Estoque.

The third generation Ford Focus RS was hotly anticipated to continue its namesake’s chart-topping success in the UK, but also marked the debut of the model in the US market – so no wonder Hot Wheels chose to make it. I was lucky enough to find it today, and doesn’t it just look fabulous in its signature colour – “Nitrous Blue”!

Hot Wheels ’16 Ford Focus RS

I was collecting Hot Wheels almost exclusively until recently, when Matchbox and Majorette were suddenly in the stores again. I had bought plenty of vintage Lesneys in the meantime, but with the return of Matchbox to the stores (well, store) I’ve fallen more in love with the licensed Matchboxes with their superior detail and stock look.

A family car with styling that can scare them away!

But occasionally there is a Hot Wheels that I just fall in love with! And this Ford Focus is one. It is right that Hot Wheels did this one, too – the “I’m going to eat your children” attitude of this family hatchback makes it a little too extreme for a modern Matchbox.

While I love the chrome 5-spokes that have been on Hot Wheels for a long time, I’m confused as to why they did not do a more accurate black design on this car. Still, no complaints about the wheel choice.

There are no tail light tampos, which is a shame, because that would have turned this casting from terrific to brilliant. A license plate and tail lights? I might have to add some of my own, because that will break up the blue at the rear very nicely.

The blue colour pops, and it just leaped out at me on the pegs. A nice little touch on the back is the RS lettering. Also, check out that rear skid plate and exhaust pipes – nicely captured details.

It reminds me a lot of the recent Matchbox Volvo V60 in Polestar Blue. In fact…

Nitrous blue or Polestar blue?

Yes! I thought they’d look great side-by-side. The cheeky Volvo and the grumpy Ford. A good pair!

The interior can’t really be seen because the glass is tinted quite dark, but there looks to be a nice level of detail on the interior dash. The body moulding is nice however the paint is thick in some places. This is however a fun looking casting with lots of personality that has captured the little Ford well.

My verdict? Looks like I can’t restrict myself to just buying Matchboxes, when Hot Wheels are this good!

Hot Wheels are always going to catch the eye. They just pop, which is what keeps me coming back. I’m not hard to please, and bright colours have always been my way of finding small joy in the world. I mean, I like the cars too. But the colour adds to it.

It helps when the cars are real though. And the Hot Wheels Muscle Mania 5-pack is one heck of a cool multipack.

However, it did cost me £7.50. Seven fifty! That’s £1.50 per car.

Considering the regular price for an indivudual Hot Wheel at the store I was in is £1.30, charging an extra 20p for buying them in a multipack makes about as much sense as square wheels.

Consider, as well, that when bought together, the Matchboxes from my last discovery cost £1.30 per car. Why do these cost so much, I wonder? Does Mattel not want them to sell fast in the UK?

Either way, I got them, because just look at that Mustang. Look at it POP with that metallic gold paint. Wow, I wish you could see it in person because the photos do not do him justice.

I think the wheels must help.

The pack came with the Mustang (no date, but I’m going to use my American Classic knowledge to hazard 1969) the 1974 Dodge Charger (amazing colour again, but disappointing lack of interior piece and blacked out plastic windows), Chevy Nomad (is that a 1955 grille? I think it is) 1967 Pontiac Firebird 400 in blue, and the classic Black ’64 Impala. Super cool!

Pretty sure that’s a ’55 Chevy, but correct me if I’m wrong. Hot Wheels tend to distort the model a little for hot rodding reasons, so it can be hard to be 100% accurate.

I love it when they throw in a mix of classic castings with new ones.

But let’s address the elephant in the room here – that Chevy Nomad used to have a metal base. And damn if it’s annoying now that it doesn’t. It’s strange, the car almost feels smaller without it. Maybe that’s just me.

So, yes, I may complain about the price. £1.50 is seemingly a lot for a little toy car. But I guess I’d buy them no matter how much they cost, wouldn’t I?

There are lots of features lined up for the Christmas season. However, it’s been a little tricky finding the time, with me making the magazine and writing a number of features elsewhere recently.

However, my recent Matchbox and Hot Wheels finds are looking very good indeed, and I can’t wait to get some photo shoots done in the coming weeks.

I’ve still to find the 1950s Type 14 Karmann Ghia, but I love Der Große Karmann all the same. The GT40 looks amazing, as does the Datsun and the Buick Century though I’d have preferred the latter in Police livery.The Mack B came in the five pack with an assortment of real and fantasy vehicles, and I think it’s an amazing casting.It’s great to put a GMC Stepside and Ford Truck next to each other – which do you prefer?

I’ve also got a lot of photos from the Birmingham NEC and a couple of special models I picked up there, including a Buick Roadmaster Riviera and a Bond Chevy. Stay tuned!